This was the confronting scene in a popular vegan café, after an elderly woman entered the store, and subjected staff to an angry lecture on nutrition – which the owner alleges also included racial abuse.
WATCH THE SHOCKING CONFRONTATION BELOW
The conservatively dressed woman is seen in a clip from her reportedly much longer tirade, which shows her lecturing staff on the perceived dangers of a vegan diet, a choice she believes to be nutritionally lacking to the point of danger.
The incident, which occurred at Sweet Release Cakes and Treats Café, in the New Zealand city of Wellington, naturally left café owner Kristine Bartley upset.
'This lady opened our door, came in yelling about deficiencies, called us "vaygun" f***wits, I let her rant a bit more then she called me an Asian f***wit and I asked her to leave,' Kristine alleges.
While the video - which apparently begins some time into the confrontation - does not show the alleged racial abuse, it does show a very angry woman who apparently feels veganism is a threat to public health. Referencing a tragic case in the UK where a child apparently almost died from an inadequate diet provided by vegan parents, the ranting visitor was on the warpath.
'You should be banned because you're evil’ she raged at the worker's camera phone, ‘particularly when it comes to children.’
While polite in her response, Kristine wasn’t going to take the tirade.
'You can't come into my shop and just abuse me. You called us f**kwits,' she responded.
'All we're doing is existing as a vegan cafe and you've come in randomly screaming at my team.’
Replied the woman defiantly: 'It's not abuse! It's not abuse', before seemingly blaming her own language choices on the dietary practices of vegans.
Giving Kristine permission to post to the video, the woman added, 'Well put it on social media. I hope people learn that vegan is dangerous!'
The incident was far from amusing for Kristine, who posted, ‘My hands are shaking and I feel like bursting into tears.
'This happens a lot online but has never happened in person. Now, you have a glimpse of the behind the scenes I have to deal with on the daily and what many vegans get yelled at just for existing.’
The woman, whose identity is unknown, has yet to respond to the erupting controversy.
